Norway is a truly magical land situated up near the Arctic Circle filled with stunning vistas, tremendous Fjords where the sea cuts deep canyons through the terrain, endless summer and winter outdoor activities, great views of the Northern lights and a handful of small cities and quaint fishing villages to explore.
A couple practical points about Norway, before we get started though. 1) Norway is very expensive as far as European destinations go. Expect New York City prices everywhere. $10-15 for a beer or a glass of wine is not uncommon.
2). Norway is HUGE and due to the many Fjords that cut into the terrain along with a highway speed limit of 80km/hr, coupled with a lack of trains, it takes forever to get anywhere within the county. There are no direct routes anywhere. Due to the crazy terrain, you have to weave and wind every which way to get where you’re going, the speed limits are ludicrously low and you often have to take ferries to cross the many waterways as there are not nearly as many bridges as there are waterways to cross. Have no fear, the ferries run fairly regularly and are easy enough to navigate. You just pull your car onto the ferry and ride across the water for free and continue on once you get to the other side. Just realize that it will take you 10-12 hours of driving and often times even more if you plan on driving from one distant city or town to another.
3). Norway gets cold fast. Winter starts in late August. So if you are going to enjoy their summer, just be prepared that it really is only June and July. Even in “Summer” the max temperatures top out at around 65-67F. Towards the end of August begins their rainy season which lasts through January. The good news is that the weather along the coast stays pretty consistent and mild from the far south to the far north, all the way above the Arctic Circle. Unless you are going up specifically to see the Northern Lights or to ski, I’d recommend late June/early July as the prime time to visit Norway.
As for how to visit Norway and get around, there are two main ways to go about it. First, you could do your stay by way of a Norwegian Cruise. These cruise ships typically take you up the western coast of Norway, visiting one or more Fjords while stopping in a few of the major cities/towns along the way. Or, you can book your own stays in each of these towns and take planes from one town to the next while renting a car to allow you to explore the surrounding areas. Finally, you can book a combination of these experiences. The Hurtigruten Ferry has port by port booking options as well as 6, 7, 11, and 12 day cruise options.
Flying is fairly easy as well as Norway is littered with airports. Just make sure to book your flights first as there are limited flights to most airports as they are all very small. Since we hate cruises, we opted for a combo of flights, rental cars and ferries and it was really easy to manage. Driving, despite the ludicrous speed limits was very easy as the roads are fantastic, wide open and with little to no traffic. The ferries were surprisingly easy to navigate and the rental car companies were a delight to work with.
Norway’s main cities/towns to visit are the capital city, Oslo, its college town and main cultural hub Bergen, Ålesund a small town with great access to some of Norway’s best and biggest Fjords, The Lofoten Islands where you will undoubtedly fill up your instagram account with stunning landscape photos, and finally, Tromsø where you’ll discover unique natural attractions like the northern lights and midnight sun. There are plenty more places to explore in Norway, but these are the highlights. Norway’s official travel website has a ton of detail on all the other places to explore along with the ones we listed above.
For our trip, we started in the south with Bergen, where we explored the city and its famous fish market. We took a day tour to the Fjords, the oldest church in Norway, a goat cheese farm, a brewery with live music and an open-air, interactive Viking Museum. Then we took a short flight to Ålesund, rented a car and explored the Atlantic Ocean Road, as well as Norway’s most spectacular Fjord, Geirangerfjord. And, finally we spent a few days exploring the gorgeous Lofoten Islands. I’m very glad that we went from south to north as the experience only seems to get better the further you travel north in Norway. My only wish is that we had more time.
Click on the photos below for more information on the individual areas we visited.
